episode_0036

Lionel Balzac.

He was standing in front of the entrance of a publishing company called ‘Half and Half.’ There was an appointment to meet a great writer named Herodotus.

Herodotus was Lionel’s benefactor. He forgave Lionel, cheered him on, and supported him.

The world says that Homer is the savior of literature given by God, but…

Lionel knows that there are two saviors in this world. Herodotus, who created Holmes and Lupine, was the second savior of literature.

And, he was also Lionel’s first savior.

Lionel hesitated, holding the ‘Lupin’ card tightly in his hand. The words written on the card were clear to my eyes.

[I will visit again when the original product is available.]

[-Arsene Lupin, Phantom Thief-]

Was he genuine? I didn’t know.

I learned about romance novels from Homer, but in the end, this too was just something I learned and stole.

If you think about it, Lionel was always just an imitation. Since I had no burning inspiration, I had no choice but to always imitate from others.

It may have been a mistake for him, who couldn’t create anything on his own, to think ‘I want to become a writer’.

“‥‥‥.”

Suddenly a thought occurred to me.

I became afraid. It was difficult to take a single step. I was out of breath and felt like I was trapped in the rising water.

I’d rather just suffocate like this.

The moment I closed my eyes in such an impulse─.

“Ah, you came first. Were you waiting in front of the publisher?”

The voice of the Savior brought him out of silence.

“Herodotus, author… .”

“Yes.”

“Thank you… . Well, what should I say─.”

“Hmm, wouldn’t it take quite a bit of time to talk about it here? There is a reception room inside─.”

The Savior reaches out to him.

He smiled brightly and spoke.

“We go together.”

“… Yes!”

Lionel didn’t know.

It was a plagiarism of a long-standing slogan symbolizing the ROK-US alliance.

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.

.

Lionel Balzac sat in the drawing room and took a deep breath.

I silently waited for him to get comfortable.

After a few minutes, he lowered his head and opened his mouth.

“Thank you! Writer! Thanks to the author introducing me to Homer, I was able to publish my book!”

“Is that so? Thank you.”

“And… Thank you for forgiving me for the sins I committed.”

“Is there anything you can call a sin? If the editor makes a request, the writer follows, well.”

I don’t think it’s such a big sin to be unable to overcome the pressure of an editor due to hardships in life.

Of course, it would have been a different story if he had done something like that and come out shamelessly, but he properly reflected on his actions and apologized. Then, as a plagiarist writer, I could no longer blame him.

“When I heard such an unreasonable request, I wouldn’t have been embarrassed if I hadn’t picked up the pen. In the end, it was I who chose to pick up the pen.”

“Thanks to you, I met a talented writer like you.”

“… So, I’d like to give this back. With my book.”

Lionel took out a book from his bag and handed it to me along with a card.

The card was a letter of recommendation written on the ‘Arsene Lupin’ card I gave him.

As for the book.

“This is the novel I really wanted to write.”

This was a romance novel he published together with Homer.

It was a book I had already read several times, but it was a different story if it were handed to me by the author himself.

I accepted the book with joy.

And he bowed his head and expressed his gratitude.

“Thank you. This is the most valuable gift I received this year.”

“It’s not that great of a novel.”

“No. It’s true.”

So, sometimes a coincidence comes across as a miracle. Really out of the blue, without any warning or clue.

There are moments when a coincidence that is so absurd and without context touches one person.

In this world, it is called a fairy’s prank. At first, I thought it was just a coincidence, but when I saw the title of the novel he wrote, I couldn’t help but realize it.

“Receiving such an interesting novel as a gift is truly a joy.”

“… Thank you.”

A monster called [Phantom Thief Haksen VS Sherlock Holmes]. Maurice Leblanc.

The name is ‘Lionel Balzac’. Honoré de Balzac.

And, the title of this novel that he really wanted to write.

“Emma is actually the name of the woman I loved. Now I’m in a position where I can’t see it… .”

Emma. Jane Austen.

This person was experiencing a fairy’s prank. It was a prank that no one but me would have guessed.

“Ah! However, this does not mean that I wrote it based on my true story. So, um, should I say it’s a metaphor? She already left for Heaven several years ago. The wall of identity was actually a wall between life and death that God created… . haha… , is it too grandiose? ?”

Lionel rambled on and explained what this work meant and what he was thinking when he wrote it.

I smiled and nodded. We chimed in from time to time, and sometimes we even asked questions about the work first. The work he wrote called ‘Emma’ was different from Emma written by Jane Austen, but it was similar in one way.

“So, um, yes. I think I was too greedy with the novel. haha… , I think I’m probably the only one who can love this kind of main character. He is also the main character I love the most… . Emma in real life was a truly beautiful woman… .”

“I think that is wrong.”

“Yes?”

“This main character named Emma will be loved. From countless people.”

His protagonist was lovable.

I’m not a critic, but I can be sure of this one thing.

“This novel will remain a classic and will be read by people forever. And countless people will learn about love through this novel.”

“You think so highly of me… .”

This ‘Emma’ will remain a classic. Not because it is a Jane Austen novel, but because it is a novel by Lionel Balzac. It would be remembered for a lifetime as a novel that anyone in the world could sympathize with and love.

“Isn’t it true that an artist who gets caught up in a fairy’s prank leaves a mark in history?”

“A fairy’s prank? haha… . I wish I could experience such pranks too… .”

“I’ve already experienced it.”

“Yes?”

Because it’s difficult to explain this ‘prank’ to him.

Instead, I shrugged my shoulders and said playfully.

“A writer recognized as a genius by two of the most renowned writers in the empire. What is this if not a fairy’s prank?”

“… Haha, that’s true too. Surely, if it weren’t for a fairy’s prank, a miracle like this couldn’t happen… .”

“If necessary, I can write a recommendation.”

Homer and Herodotus.

This author’s work, which has been recognized by two authors, will soon rise to fame. And many aspiring writers will study romance by reading his books.

This man, with his innate sense of structure, could have been a much better teacher than me, who was nothing more than a plagiarist.

I thought of Lionel Balzac teaching students at the ‘Literature Academy’ that will be officially established. A pleasant future awaited students who learned literature from him, publishing many interesting works.

“Then I feel too burdened… .”

“Let’s call it an investment. An investment in future great writers. No, just this ‘Emma’ is already a masterpiece of the present, not the future.”

“‥‥‥.”

So, whether Lionel Balzac feels pressured or not.

That wasn’t my consideration.

“Let’s go together. Mr. Lionel Balzac.”

“… yes. Author Herodotus. thank you… .”

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“It’s been a while, author.”

“Yes, it’s been a while. Cardinal Garnier. It is an honor to meet the Cardinal of the Church.”

Cardinal Garnier came to the publishing house.

This was our second meeting, having seen it once when ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther’ was published.

“The reason I visited the author again is because the council decided to ‘beatify’ him.”

“… Yes?”

“So I guess I’ll have to call you Ga Kyeong-ja from now on. The beatification process takes several years, but until beatification occurs, the author becomes a Venerable, a candidate for beatification, and receives equal respect from the bishops of each region.”

“Uh, well, I don’t quite understand the situation. Wasn’t my beatification canceled?”

“The good will shown by the author this time was recognized as a ‘miracle’ by the church.”

“A miracle… ?”

Cardinal Garnier smiled gently and explained the ‘miracle’.

“Do you know what a miracle is?”

“… I’m not sure.”

“We call miracles things that cannot be achieved with human will, but are possible only with the help of God.”

“Is it different from magic or blessing? ?”

Cardinal Garnier thought for a moment about my question.

He nodded as if he had organized his thoughts and explained.

“Magic can bring rain in a drought, and a blessing can make a lame person walk. But none of them can free our hearts from malice.”

“Your heart?”

“Making the wounded forgive those who hurt them, making the strong protect the weak, making the apathetic turn to church, and making people become martyrs for their faith. We call it a miracle.”

“‥‥‥.”

“The miracle that the Savior accomplished a thousand years ago was recreated on this earth by Homer. Unless it is a miracle, who can make the rich open their treasuries for the poor and give them glory? Who can make children love themselves as they love themselves?”

A pure white brilliance shimmered in Cardinal Garnier’s eyes.

Proof of the existence of God. Divine power.

He, who felt the presence of God closer than anyone else, spoke to me.

“For priests who have received only blessings like us, I am just envious. If our only glory is receiving undeserved blessings and being thankful for His kindness, how could this not be a shame?”

He said he has never experienced a miracle.

“So, please ask the author. Please be beatified by the church and become a blessed person, and furthermore, a saint.”

“Even if that’s the case, what can I do…? ?”

“Just say one thing.”

“‥‥‥.”

“Do you believe miracles exist in this world?”

To that simple but clear question.

I was thinking in a daze.

He nodded like a person possessed by something.

“Yes.”

.

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“Zion.”

“Yes. Master.”

“What do you think a miracle is?”

“Are you talking about a miracle?”

Shion tilted his head once and answered without hesitation.

After hearing that answer, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“To me, your literature is a miracle.”

“Fuuuu, really?”

“Yes.”

“That’s what I think too.”

There was a pile of romance novels published by various publishers across the empire on my desk.

This was a miracle!